How do I get my song on the radio – Is pay for radio play effective?

Radio, getting airplay and the ever popular question asked all the time “how do I get my song on the radio?” are being discussed to death these days with people praising radio and others slamming it. There are a lot of opinions when it comes to new online radio stations as well as the old terrestrial ones and all the satellite stations as well.

From those asking the exacts on how can I get my song on the radio to those asking if they should pay for radio play, it is a big argument with many in the music industry from record labels to music producers, music consultants to artists and everyone in between.

I am one of the people that is no longer a fan of radio. I find that most of the radio hype is based around a market that has died and barring a massive budget for airplay, these small crumbs that are sold to artists about getting this position or that spot are rarely if ever converting in to sales, revenue or assisting hype for getting signed or moving onward and upward in the music business.

While I would not cut radio entirely out of any launch budget for an artist that had the funds or the backing to do a full and proper release, I absolutely believe and have seen much more productive and profitable results from artists investing more in to social media than radio at this point.

Now you can show numbers and the hype of this hitting this spot or that spot on some chart. And right now, there are thousands and thousands of charts out there but show me the conversion.

I am tired of hearing about the hype of radio, the hype of paying for spots, the hype that charting on this chart or positioning here is all that. I am tired of seeing examples that are showcasing either higher echelon artists or using numbers from over a decade ago.

I want the proof and I want the numbers. To date I haven’t seen them and for those that have found radio to be effective, they are working on much much larger budgets with much more marketing than the average independent musician out there.

Be careful what you buy in to and what you pay for. Make sure it is worth your while, your time and your investment in the end. If it is not translating, converting to sales or larger exposure with some kind of proof, it is not worth it!

Talk is cheap while radio is not. Make sure you invest in proof for radio or anything else.

L

Loren Weisman is an accomplished music producer, author and music consultant. He is the author of “The Artist’s Guide to Success in the Music Business”, a book to help independent artists, musicians, bands, labels and managers achieve self sufficient and sustainable success. For more info on Loren and music consulting services, visit: http://www.lorenweisman.com

Music Business Exposed. Yup, scammers, liars, tigers and bears oh my.

It is obvious in many different fields from politics to entertainment and everywhere in between, you have your scammers, your liars and your fakes. When you look at the music business exposed, you will find a greater number of those who are being deceptive, those who are going to try to use you, take advantage of you and aim to make what they can off you over those that are actually in it to help you and want to see you succeed.

Just as much as it sucks and it shouldn’t be that way, it is. The two biggest weapons in your favor is doubt and honor.

First, when you first hear it, doubt it. Make sure anyone you are getting involved with or any company, manager, agency or contract is clear, clean and reviewed correctly. It is very easy to sell dreams and when some people hear that they are on the horizon of what they have wanted for years, they bypass that common sense knowledge and red flags that would go up anywhere else and anytime else. If anyone is pushing you to sign on the dotted line, then and there, hoist red flag….fast.

Doubt first, do your double checks, do your research, make sure things line up and ask a lot of questions. Those are tips for success that will keep you from locking in to some one that is a liar or going to drag you to failure.

Second, have honor. Be true and honest in a business that is more than often not that way. Get the reputation for being the one people can trust. This will help you along in a way you cant even imagine. An independent musician with honor and a reputation for telling the truth is going to shine brightly.

When it comes to that whole making it in music and making up all those lies about what you are doing, even when you have not done it, is not going to help you. You can market, you can promote and you can hype, but keep it real and keep it lined up with the truth. Wait for some things to lock up solid before sharing them with friends or fans and make sure you are not getting caught in a lie or a series of lies.

Many things can change often, but other people will not care if they continue to hear from you how what you said at one point is no longer true at another one. Easiest answer, bite lip and try to hold back certain exciting things till they are either a dead lock and for sure. Yes, there will still be last minute cancellations, but if you wait, you will be sharing less of them and coming off better to friends and fans.

And when things change or something that you said is no longer true, regardless of it being someone else;s fault or not. Let people know, so they can find out from you and not second hand before you get a chance to tell them.

In many of the music consulting sessions I give, I make the joke about how it is easier to just tell people what is happening, what is true and what is going on honestly. It is easier than having to try to remember a whole bunch of made of fiction and having to back track to lies. There are enough people out there doing that anyways. Be different, Be honest, Be true.

L

Loren Weisman is an accomplished music producer, author and music consultant. He is the author of “The Artist’s Guide to Success in the Music Business”, a book to help independent artists, musicians, bands, labels and managers achieve self sufficient and sustainable success. For more info on Loren and music consulting services, visit: http://www.lorenweisman.com

Social Media Promotion – Advice for Artists – Content is King & Queen.

It is driven home by anyone in promotions, marketing or branding that in any field, when it comes to social media promotion, the best advice for artists, authors, entertainers or anyone in the arts is that content is king and queen and it needs to rule the roost.

In the sea of artists, bands, authors, entertainers, actors or who ever is trying to get their name, their product or their idea out there, the rules of business today scream that content is the answer over just having a website and some social media that is rarely updated or not given attention in the right way.

This of course rings not true, if you have the immense budget to do your music marketing, music promotion and music advertising. Now barring you have that massive fortune to spend at your will, you might want to put some time in to your content.

The biggest topic I cover in music consulting sessions when social media promotion, marketing topics arise or questions around obtaining investors, a label, a manager or anyone else, a part of the answer is always content.

Do not worry about the video being perfectly polished. You can polish and heavily edit a video, but at the same time, put up videos that you can shoot with your phone, your laptop or basic video camera.

Do not worry about the perfect picture being posted. A simple phone camera shot with a solid description, strong keywords and again, that uniform content that can point people in the direction of your website, your music, your art or your schedule each day is incredibly effective.

Do not worry about blogging or writing the most amazing article. I know, I am not the best writer. I know that I get busted on a regular basis for my editing or better yet lack of editing skills, but I make the effort and follow through with the execution to write something every day.

It is important to plan for and build the larger aspects, elements and products of the career you are creating but during this phase as well as after the bigger things get done, it is all about the content going up on a regular, continual basis with a sense of basic uniformity that is leading the reader, viewer, listener or whoever to those larger pieces you want them to see in the first place.

L

Loren Weisman is an accomplished music producer, author and music consultant. He is the author of “The Artist’s Guide to Success in the Music Business”, a book to help independent artists, musicians, bands, labels and managers achieve self sufficient and sustainable success. For more info on Loren and music consulting services, visit: http://www.lorenweisman.com